Dusting apparatus and nozzle construction



Sept. 29, 1942. D. PARKER DUS'LING APPARATUS AND NOZZLE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 5, 1939 FIZ-6. 2.

INVENTOR. @4P/rf@ ATTO NEY.

- adjacent tree.

Patented Sept. 29, 1942 Unirse stares maar QFFIC DUSTENG APPARATUS AND NOZZLE CONSTRUCTION Donald Parker, Fresno, Calif.V

Application August 5, 1939, Serial No. 288,628

Claims. (Cl. 43-148) My invention relates to dust applying machines and has particular reference to an apparatus adapted for dusting or dry spraying of fruit trees, vines, vegetable plants and the like with insecticide or fungicide in the form of dry dusts.

The practice of dry dusting trees, vines and plants with powdered insecticides and funglcides has become a well established method for controlling certain insect pests. For example, the dry dusting of citrus trees with sulphur dust for thrips has become a recognized treatment in this industry while likewise the dusting of insecticides on plants, vegetable crops and the like has been practiced by use of aeroplane clusters.

In the treatment of citrus trees and, to some extent, deciduous trees with dry dusts, an apparatus has been used comprising generally a carriage device which may be moved along the space between adjacent rows of trees and carries a dust bin from which the dust may be fed into a blast of air from one or more blowers mounted on the carriage, the air and dust blast being conducted by one or more conduits extending outwardly from the carriage and arranged to be disposed beneath the overhanging branches of the trees.

In my copending application Serial No. 284,882, filed July 17, 1939, now Patent No. 2,226,136 of December 24, 1940, I have disclosed a dust applicator which employs a pair of dusting nozzles, one on each of a pair of conduits which extend respectively on either side of the carriage so that a pair of rows of trees may be treated simultaneously, the conduits there illustrated being pivotally mounted on the carriage for a swinging movement in a horizontal direction to dispose the nozzles beneath a tree in advance of the position of the carriage and then as the carriage advances along the row the nozzle may remain beneath that tree until the carriage has passed. Then the nozzle may be swung forwardly to a position beneath the next In that application I have illustrated and described a control for the nozzles which will allow the nozzles to be rotated about a horizontal axis to produce a more even distribution of the dust throughout the tree,

It is an object of the present invention to pro-' vide an improved nozzle and conduit construction and mounting for use with the carriage illustrated in my copending application hereinbefore referred to and which will providefor a more widely diiused spread of the dust.

It is another object of my invention to provide a nozzle and conduit structure and mounting therefor which will permit the same nozzle structure and the same dusting apparatus to be employed for the dusting of low growing vegetables and plants as well as trees.

During the summer season when the trees are subjected to strong sunshine, itis desirable to dust only the underneath sides of the leaves and the interior of the tree and to avoid as much as possible the application of dust to the exterior of the tree so as to avoid sulphur burns. I-Iowever, during the winter season it is desirable to dust the exterior surfaces of the leaves as well, particularly for the control of certain spiders and similar pests.

It is another object of my invention to provide a nozzle and conduit structure which may be employed to simultaneously dust both the interior and exterior portions of a tree.

Another object of my invention is to provide a dusting apparatus in which the nozzles are automatically oscillated about a horizontal axis so as to direct blasts of the air and dust in different directions against the surface of the leaves to insure the complete contacting and covering of the leaves with dust.

It is also an object of my invention to provide an apparatus of the character set forth in the preceding paragraph which employs a novel joint or elbowv construction between the dusting nozzles and the carriage to permit adjustment of the angular position and the location of the nozzle.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a nozzle construction for use in an apparatus of the character set forth in the preceding paragraphs which includes a means for adjusting the scope of the dust blast and the relative amounts directed against the under and upper tree surfaces.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from a study of the following specifications, read in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view illustrating the appearance of the preferred embodiment of my invention and the manner in which it is employed to simultaneously dust two rows of trees;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the equipment illus-4 trated in Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section through a novel elbow construction employed with the apparatus illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective View illust'rating the appearance and details of construcriage may be moved over the ground surface, 3N`

between adjacent rows of trees Land 5^. The car; riage I is adapted to support a suitable source of power (not shown) which may comprise an internal combustion engine or other self-ogm;v tained prime mover.

The power source or engine is drivably coupled with a pair of fans or'blowers 6 andy E which have intakes 8 and 9, respectively, coupled to a dust ybin I9 which contains a supply ofv finely divided sulphur or other insecticide o r fungicide which is to be applied to the trees. A downwardly extending pipe I I is connected to the discharge of the blower 6 and connected to a horizontally extendingl conduit I2, the outer end of which is provided with upwardly directed nozzles ISadapted to distribute throughout the foliage of the tree 4 the dust which is delivered thereto by means of the -conduits I-Iv and I2 by the fan or blower G.

As illustrated` in Figs. 1Y and 2; the conduit I2 is arranged to be carried in a horizontal, position immediately above and closely adjacent the surface of the ground 3 so that the nozzle I3 may be readily swung into position beneathl the tree without interfering` with branchesv thereof-i. I prefer to support the conduit I2 upon the carriage I in` such manner that the conduit may be pivotally movedY to a position disposing the nozzle I3 beneath` a` tree so as to maintain the nozzle thereunder as the carriage is advancedalong in the rows between the trees. Y

To permit the conduit I 2 tobe swung forwardly and rearwardly of the carriage, I.v connect the inner. end thereof. te. the dewnwardly extending, pipe H by means. eiem elbow. |54: andV provide. e retery joint l5; between the dewnwardly extend:e lne end. ef the nireA Il and. the upwardly directed: endl of the elbow.

One form of rotary joint which will serve. this purpose is illustrated detailinFig. 3 as being formed by radially llangins alle` end` 0f` the pipe I I as indi'cated at I'B, while asimilar radial anging of the en d of the elbow I4 iselllplyed as indicated at I'I. The abutting faces o f the flanges I6l and Il are spacedapart by means, of ar packing ring I8 which, as is illustrated, isv proyided with an internal radially Ydisposed V-shaped groove i9 so that air pressure within thepipe II and elbow I4 will be sov directed upon the packing I8 as to cause the inner edges of the packing to be expanded out into snugV relation with the flanges I6 and I.'I.

To hold the end. of theipipe I.I and theelbow I4. together, I employ a unit which may comprise a. nut member 29; having a. central bore, 2I suiiig cient to readily pass over the circumferenceof the body portion of the pipe II prior toJ the iangingrout of thai-lange I6; A cooperatingnut 22.is.simila r1y provided upon the elbow I 4 prior to the flangingput. of the ange I'I, they nutsZIl and 22 being 'providedy with male and female threads, as4 indicated at. 2 3, so that, they, may. be threadedly assembled together to retain the packing I8 in place and prevent relative movement of the pipe II and elbow Ill away from each other, while permitting the relative rotational movement between these members.

It will Ibe seen that this construction permits the outer end of the conduit I2 to be swung about the vertical axis dened by the downwardly extending pipe II so that the nozzle I3 may be disposed 'beneath a tree in advance of the position of the carriage and then rotated beneath the tree as the carriage advances. The nozzle I3 is accordingly preferably constructed to produce a substantially fan-shaped blast of air and dust, the

. planer ofY the fan extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the conduit I2. As the conduit IQZ-is rotated in the manner pointed out above, the fan-shaped blast of air and dust will also be rotated through a considerable portion of a revolution asthe carriage advances and will so extend the area of the dust blast as to cause a substantially even distribution of the dust throughout theentire tree.

In View of the fact that the total angle through which the conduit I2- may be moved is relatively limited, the efficiency of the applicator and the even and complete distribution of the dust throughout the trees may be greatly increased by so arranging the nozzle I3, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, that' while the plane of the fan shape of the nozzle is generally disposed parallel to the axis ofthe conduit I2', the nozzle is, in fact. adapted to direct four separate fan shaped blasts upwardly into the tree, each of these blasts being disposed at an angle to the others so as to extend' the scope of the combined blast and provideV more complete and even distribution of the dust throughoutthe foliage and fruit.

The nozzle I3- is accordingly preferably constructed along the lines illustrated in Fig. 4

from sheetV metal and includes a pair of nozzle elements Ifa, and [3b which are each provided with side walls 24- and' 25 which slope upwardly andl inwardly toward each other to provide a relatively long and narrow fan-shaped outlet 26 and a relatively short and wide inlet 21 connecting to` the conduit I 2. The planes of the nozzles I3@ and' |319 are both disposed parallel to the axis of; the conduit I 2- while the axes of these nozzles are disposed at an angle to each other so that the blast from the nozzle I3a is directed upwardly at one angle and the blast from thenozzle I3?)` is directed upwardly at a different angle. Between the nozzles I3a. and Ib, I- dispose a third fan-shaped nozzle If3o which may include, as is best illustrated in Fig. 5,4 a pair of upwardly extending side wallsA 2 8 and 29 which define a relatively long and wide inlet 3D and slope inwardly toward each other go define a relatively long and narrow discharge A pair Yofadjustment leaves 32 and 93, one secured as by welding or other suitable means to the side wall 29and the other secured to the side wallV 28, are provided extending diagonally across the passage formed by the side walls 28 and 29 so as to partially close this passage. The amount which these leaves restrict the ow of dust and air may be adjusted by means of adjustingl screws 3'4, and 35 threadedly engaged with theside walls 29 and 28; respectively, and dispcsedoin apositionto bear against the leaves 32 and' 3,3 so that rotation of thesescrews will operate to force the. leaves outwardly. away from theside wallA to whichthey, are attached', the

resilience of the material employed being relied upon to restore the leaves to their original position whenever the adjusting screws are loosened.

It frequently occurs that in treating a grove or orchard certain of the trees will not be symmetrical in shape so that the mere disposition of the nozzle I3 beneath the trees and the rotation thereof in a horizontal plane by the forward movement of the carriage I will not sufciently distribute the dust throughout allA portions of such non-symmetrical trees. I have accordingly provided for rotation of the conduit i2 about its own longitudinal axis so that the fan-shaped blasts of air and dust which are discharged from the nozzle I3 may be directed differently under diiierent trees as indicated by the judgment of an operator of the machine as to how the blast should be most effectively directed against that particular tree. For this purpose I provide a rotary joint 35 between the upon its inner surface near opposite ends of the shell, to be aligned with corresponding grooves i211 formed on the exterior surface of the conduit I2 so that the cooperating grooves 31a, and IZa constitute a ball race into which a plurality of metal balls 39 may b-e placed and which will act to hold the conduit I2 iixed against longitudinal movement relative to the shell 31 but which will permit free rotation between these members.

The length of the conduit I2 will of course vary with the spacing of the rows of trees which are found in the various orchards and the overhanging weight of the nozzles and conduit may be supported by means of suitable springs 4I), one end of which may be secured to suitable brackets 4i formed on the carriage while the other end of which may be secured to a yoke or clevis 42 which is in turn secured to the shell 31 of the rotary joint 36.

When the apparatus is to be used for the dusting ci trees, an operator may ride upon a seat or platform 43 on the carriage I and from which he may control both the horizontal positioning of the nozzle beneath the trees and the maintaining of the nozzle beneath the tree as the carriage advances by means of a suitable pull rope 44 secured in any suitable manner to the conduit I2, the disposition of the springs 4I) and the bracket 4I being such as to constantly urge the conduit I2 to a position in advance of the carriage. Hence by releasing the rope 44 the conduit will swing forwardly into position beneath the next adjacent tree and then by gradually drawing in upon the pull rope 44 as the carriage advances the nozzle I3 may be maintained beneath this tree and will rotate through a considerable angle beneath the tree.

Also the operator may have a pair of reins 45 and 4c extending from a bridle Il secured to the conduit I2 to the seat 43 so that by plnling upon one or the other of the reins l5 and 46 the nozzle I3 and the conduit I2 may be rotated about a horizontal axis to oscillate beneath the tree and more effectively direct the blasts of dust upon the tree.

I have illustrated the blowers, conduits and nozzles as being duplicated on either side ofthe machine so as to permit the simultaneous treatment of two rows of trees and duplicate controls may be provided so that each of the conduits may Vbe independently controlled.

Since each of the nozzles I3 is independently controlled, I provide valves 48 and 49 disposed between the inlet 8 and the dust bin III and between the inlet 9 and the dust bin I0 so that throughout the operation of the device the 0D- erator controlling one of the nozzles I3 may, at all times, control the quantity of dust which is to be injected into the blast of air independently of similar control exercised by the other operator.

In order to permit the dusting of the exterior leaves as well as the interior of the tree, I may provide an auxiliary nozzle I on the conduit I2 as by forming the nozzle |39: in a short section of conduit which may be interposed in the conduit I2 between the rotary joint 35 and the nozzle I3. The nozzle Ilia: is shaped as illustrated in Figs. l, 2 and 4 such that a substantially fanshaped blast of dust is directed upwardly and away from the carriage I so as to project about the exterior surfaces of the tree.

When the apparatus illustrated herein is to be used for the purpose of dusting vegetables and low vines, the nozzle I3 may be inverted so as to direct the blasts of dust downwardly instead of upwardly and it is found extremely effective to iix the conduits I 2 and I3 in a position extending at right angles to the path of the carriage I as by providing a locking brace rod 5l! between the clevis 42 and a suitable socket 5I formed upon or attached to some stationary part of the carriage I. When so locked against swinging movement, the nozzles I3 may be manually or automatically oscillated as the carriage advances. To permit of automatic oscillation, I provide an eccentric pin 52 on one of the carriage wheels 2 to which may be removably secured a connecting rod 53, the outer end of which mayV be detachably connected as by means of a yoke or clevis 54 to the bridle 41 on the conduit. Now as the carriage is moved forwardly, the connecting rod will be reciprocated forwardly and rearwardly, causing l an automatic oscillation of the conduit I2.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, I do not desire to be limited to any of the details of construction shown or described herein, except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a dust applicator including a means for producing a blast of air mixed with dust and a horizontally disposed conduit for conducting said blast to a point beneath a tree, a means for directing said blast comprising: a nozzle on said conduit near said outer end having such shape as to discharge a pair of upwardly directed and substantially fan shaped blasts of dust and air, said nozzle being so formed and positioned as to dispose the plane of said fan shapes at an angle to each other and substantially parallel to the axis of said conduit.

2. In a dust applicator including a means for producing a blast of air mixed with dust and a horizontally disposed conduit for conducting said blast to a point beneath a tree, a means for directing said blast comprising: a nozzle on said conduit near said outer end for discharging a plurality of upwardly directed and substantially fan shaped blasts of dust and air, said nozzle including. aepair of nozzle elements spaced( from eachother and each havingL an: elongated discharge opening. extending.- substantially paralleli to thed axis of said pipe, and: a third' nozzle element disposed between said pairsof elementsand having an elongated discharge opening extending transversely of the axis of vsaid conduit.

3. In a dust applicator including a means for producing ablast of air mixedwith dust and. a horizontally disposed conduit-for conducting said blast to a point beneath a tree, a means for directing said blast comprising: a nozzle on saidy conduit near said outer end for discharging a plurality of upwardly directed and substantially fan shapedv blasts of dust and air, said nozzle including a pair of nozzle elements spaced from each other and each having an elongated discharge opening extending substantially parallel. tov the axis of said pipe, a third nozzle element disposed between said pair of elements and having an elongated dischargel opening extendingA transversely of the axis of said conduit, and a pair of oppositely directed deector meanswithin said third element for deflecting one part of the fan-shaped blast discharged through saidy opening into a plane inclined in one direction from the plane of said fan shape and for deflecting another part of said blast into a plane inclined in the opposite direction from the plane of said fan shape.

4. In a dust applicator including a means for producing a blast of. air mixed with dust and av horizontally disposed conduit for conducting said blastv to appoint' beneath a tree, a means for directing saidrblast comprising: a nozzle on said conduit near said outer endthaving such shape asto' discharge an upwardly directed and substantially fan shaped blast of dust and air, said nozzle being so positioned'as to dispose the plane ofsaid fan shape substantially parallel to the axis of saidconduit; and an auxiliary nozzle on said. conduitl spaced inwardly from said outer end having such shape as to discharge an upwardly and outwardly directed and substantially fan'shaped blast of dust and air, the plane of which is disposed substantially parallel to the axisv of said conduit.

5.'- In a dust applicator including a means for producinga blast of air mixed with dust and a horizontally disposed conduit for conducting said blast to a point beneath a tree, a means for directing said blast comprising: a nozzle on said conduit near said outer end for discharging a plurality of upwardly directed and substantially fanshaped blasts of dust and air, said nozzle having such shape as to dispose the plane of each of said fan shapes at an angle to the others; and an auxiliary nozzle on said conduit spaced inwardly from said outer end having such shape as tov dischargevan upwardly and outwardly directed and substantially fan shaped blast of dust and air, the plane of which is disposed substantially parallel to the axis of said conduit.

DONALD PARKER. 

